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NOTE: Sen. Hank Sanders has written a weekly column for papers in his legislative district for the past twenty years. These rural, weekly papers lack a web presence, and therefore a link to the publication is not available. The column below is provided by Sen. Sanders’ office for inclusion in the Daily News Digest.

Senate Sketches # 1021

By

Senator Hank Sanders

***************

Christmas makes me think of gifts. Christmas makes me think of giving. Christmas makes me think of receiving.

Receiving gifts is so powerful. We see eyes light up. We see faces ripple with joy. The entire body expresses itself strongly and visibly. Receiving gifts is indeed powerful.

Giving gifts is so powerful. The eyes don’t light up as much as when gifts are received. The face doesn’t ripple as much with joy. The body’s outward expressions are not as strong or visible. Yet giving is much more powerful. The manifestations go deep inside, impacting the heart, spirit and soul.

Some people know how to receive but not to give. Others know how to give but not to receive. The most powerful of all is to give and receive simultaneously. True Christmas is about giving and receiving.

When I was young, I didn’t know how to give. It was all about receiving. I thought people owed me something. When people didn’t give me what I thought was due me, I was mad and frustrated. These feelings expressed themselves in meanness. I didn’t understand that it was not a gift if I thought it was due me. Even if I received, it was not a gift but a debt paid. In truth, I could neither give nor receive.

I eventually learned to give. It was a slow, painful process full of trial and error. I can’t tell you exactly when it started. I can’t tell you when it ended. I can’t tell you how I did it, but I did.

As I learned to give, a strange thing happened: I lost the capacity to receive even in the limited ways I knew. I rejected gifts, even gifts of words such as compliments. I thought that a giver could not be a receiver. I didn’t understand that by refusing to receive, I actually prevented others from giving. I had to learn, by trial and error, how to really receive.

I now know that every gift is pregnant with two forces – the spirit of giving, and the spirit of receiving. We must be able to give so others can receive. We must be able to receive so others can give.

If we truly give, we help others to truly receive. If we truly receive, we help others to truly give. It goes hand in hand, each building on the other.

When we receive, sometimes we give simultaneously. When we give, sometimes we receive at the same time. If we receive with joy and thankfulness, we immediately give a powerful gift to the giver. If we give with joy, we enhance the gift received, making it more likely the receiver with give as they receive.

The power to give is unlimited. It does not require money or other material things. God has made it possible for each and everyone to give. We just have to give gifts that cannot be wrapped in Christmas paper topped with ribbons and bows.

Dr. Carol P. Zippert, an exceptional poet, says that each time we think about giving a gift, that becomes a gift in and of itself. She says, in her own poetic way, that “Thinking of giving a gift means one thought about someone else exclusively for a moment.” Even a thought is a gift when shared. Our power to give is simply unlimited.

Last Christmas, I made a list of persons past the age of 75 (except for a couple). I called each one. My call was supposed to be a gift from me to them. I soon discovered that the way they received the gift, was a gift to me. In short order, I had received 12 powerful gifts, each building on the other. The power to receive gifts is unlimited if our power to give is unlimited.

I don’t know what I will give this year. I haven’t done a thing. I’m having to write this Sketches three days before Christmas. Whatever gift I give, I hope I give it in the truest spirit of giving, thereby enhancing each gift.

I don’t know what I will receive this year. Whatever gift is given to me, I hope I receive it in a way that it becomes a gift to the giver. This Christmas, I want to share the full power of gifts – both giving and receiving. I want you to share the same blessings. This is my thought, and it is my gift to you.

Now on to the Daily Diary.

Saturday – I visited the 21^st Century Youth Leadership Camp and participated in a panel about the transforming power of music in past and current generations. I talked to Ted Quant of New Orleans, Cheryl Threadgill of Wilcox County, Norma Jackson of Tuskegee, and Carol P. Zippert of Greene County. I also worked on many projects. That night I went to the emergency room at the hospital. My daughter, Malika Sanders Fortier, had fallen and fractured her ankle.

Sunday – I did Radio Sunday School with Dr. Margaret Hardy, Radio Education and Sunday Review. I attended the Christmas Program and Calvary Baptist Church. I talked with Algie Brantley, Alberta Smith, Yvonne Hatcher, and others at Calvary. I also talked with Senate President Pro Tem Lowell Barron. I visited with Dr. Fannie McKenzie about the Black Belt Superintendent’s Proposal. I attended a Christmas Program of song and dance at Wallace Community College. I read Sketches #1020 to Mrs. Ora Lee Gaines. I worked into the night.

Monday – I began the day over breakfast with Dr. James Mitchell of Wallace Community College. I had several conference calls about political matters. I met with two groups of educators to distribute Community Service Grants. I worked on Sketches and talked to the following: Perry County Commission Chair Brett Harrison; Dr. Douglas Ragland, Superintendent of Sumter County Schools; Lieutenant Governor-elect Jim Folsom, Jr.; Greene County Commissioner Marvin Childers; and Greene County School Board members Lester Brown and Morris Hardy. I traveled to Greene County and returned to Selma for a 3 hour conference call on Senate organizational matters.

Tuesday – I was at work before 6:00 a.m. and handled several matters before breakfast with Judge Bob Armstrong. I talked with the following: Greene County Commission Chair William Underwood; Governor Jim Folsom, Jr.; Dr. Paul Hubbert of the Alabama Education Association (AEA); Joanne Bland of the National Voting Rights Museum; House Budget Chair, Representative John Knight; Rita Lett and Godfrey King of Wallace Community College; and Senator Myron Penn. I had a number of conference calls on politics and other discussions.

Wednesday – I had another 7:00 a.m. conference call on Senate matters. I participated in a Senate Black Caucus meeting by conference call and did the radio talk program Law Lessons. I talked to various senators including Senate Dean Bobby Denton, Senator Myron Penn, Senator Quinton Ross, Senator Vivian Davis Figures, and Senator Hinton Mitchem. Others I talked with include the following: Harry Wormley of Alabama Power; Dr. Paul Hubbert of AEA; Kirk Wheeler of Chattanooga, TN; Greene County Board members Elzora Fluker and Lester Brown; and John and Carol P. Zippert, publishers of the Greene County Democrat. I went to Greene County concerning education and returned to Selma.

Thursday – I began the day with a 7:00 a.m. conference call and talked with many leaders including the following: Senators Ted Little, Pat Lindsey, Quinton Ross, and Roger Bedford; Lester Brown of Greene County; Sam Walker of Selma; Prince Arnold, Sheriff of Wilcox County; Frank Kummel and Dorothy Hulett of Lowndes County; former Alabama Supreme Court Justice John England; H. B. Williams of Monroe County; and Dr. C. A. Lett of Selma. I went to a Christmas gathering in Lowndes County and returned to Selma. I facilitated a Christmas gathering at our law firm. I had several conference calls on politics. I worked into the night.

Friday – I began the day with a series of meetings in person and by conference call. I talked with various leaders including Senator Vivian Davis Figures, Senator Hinton Mitchem, Dr. Paul Hubbert of AEA, and Josephine Curtis, Sam Walker, and Ola Morrow of Selma. I also talked with Mattie Burton, Mattie Hargrove, and Rachael Nolan of Greene County.

EPILOGUE – Too often we want to do what we can’t do. Too often we fail to do what we can do. Giving and receiving are powerful examples. We don’t give or receive what we can because we want to give or receive what we think is more. If we truly give what we can, we will give and receive a whole lot more. If we truly receive what is given, we will receive and give a whole lot more.

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